


Partners in Crime

by Lyra_Coulson



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Compliant, F/M, Marvel Universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-13
Updated: 2016-05-29
Packaged: 2018-06-08 05:29:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6840808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyra_Coulson/pseuds/Lyra_Coulson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lindsey Maddox was a level 6 SHIELD agent, partnered to specialist Grant Ward.  Little to nothing was known about her past, and her future remained uncertain, but what was known was that she was in for a hell of a ride on the Crazy Bus.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Pilot

 The secret is out. For decades, your organization stayed in the shadows, hiding the truth. But now we know... they're among us. Heroes... and monsters. The world is full of wonders.

Mike was an ordinary guy, a hard worker with a kid, doing everything he could to keep his kid safe and off the streets. His injuries had made that hard for him, but they were doing well enough. Mike was friends with several shop owners that let him work for food or other necessities.

“Thanks, Bernie,” Mike said to an older man, the owner of a corner restaurant.

Bernie smiled, “You bet.”

“Ace, come and get it,” Mike said, offering the fresh food to his only child. “What do you say we go out to your Aunt Mindy's this weekend? You and Kisha can swim in the pond.”

Ace shrugged, looking at the Avengers action figures in the display window of the next door toy store, “Sure.”

Mike smiled, “You know, you got a birthday coming up in a couple of months. Who's your favorite?”

“I'm okay,” Ace replied.

“Hey. Things are tight right now, but I'm gonna find something. Not back at the factory, but I got prospects. You and me... what are we?” Mike asked.

Ace smiled, “We're a team.”

Mike chuckled, “That's right. So, who do you…”

He was cut off by the sound of an explosion which was followed by car alarms and screaming.

Mike quickly rushed to the people wandering away from the sound, “Are you okay?”

He checked on several people before making his way back to his son, “All right, Ace, look at me. I need you to stay here with Bernie, okay? People might be hurt, and I'm gonna see if they need my help. Stay with Bernie.” Mike started to turn and run, “Watch my boy!”

A woman cried from the top of the apartment complex that had gone up in flames, “Help me! Please, help me!”

Mike ran to the side of the building, throwing up his hood. He could help this lady, so he would. Punching holes into the side of the brick building, he quickly made his way to the top.

The woman whimpered, seeing Mike’s hooded figure appear in the window, “Help me…”

Mike quickly grabbed her and jumped from the same window he had come from. Gently setting her somewhere he knew the police or an ambulance would find her, he looked around to see if anyone had noticed his actions, and there was only one. She was a young girl, maybe in her mid twenties, with her phone out, recording. Quickly, he pulled down his hood and fled from the scene.

We can't explain everything we see. But our eyes are open. So what now? There are no more shadows for you to hide in. Something impossible just happened. What are you going to do about it?

~~~

“Agent Ward, Agent Maddox, there's been a development. It's the Rising Tide. They've pinned down the location of the package. We need to abort.”  

“We're five minutes away from retrieving it,” Ward replied.

“So is everyone else. They posted the coordinates online,” Maria Hill’s voice sounded from his com-link.

“If the job was easy... “ Agent Ward started.

Agent Maddox smiled, “It wouldn’t be any fun.”

“Yeah, yeah. Watch your 6,” Hill said, “Red tie, by the window.”

Ward made his way to the fireplace, the location of the package, while Maddox scouted the apartment. He entered the passcode on the side paneling, making it swing open with ease. When he had turned back around, the package tucked safely away, there were several men standing in the room.

“Your fireplace is broken,” he said before one of the men dropped to the floor.

Agent Lindsey Maddox smiled as Ward got up and took out the others.

“Ward, Maddox, just a heads-up. We've got possible hostiles in your vicinity,” Hill said.

“Really?” Ward asked, breathing heavily.

“We didn’t notice,” Lindsey sighed.

Ward chuckled breathlessly and wrapped an arm around his mission partner, leaving the building.

~~~

“What does "S.H.I.E.L.D." stand for, Agent Ward?” Maria asked.

“Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division,” Ward recited, as he had done many times before at the Academy.

Hill looked at Lindsey next, “And what does that mean to you, Agent Maddox?”

“It means someone really wanted our initials to spell out "SHIELD."” Lindsey said, this was her normal response to the question she’d been asked so many times.

“It means we're the line, between the world and a much weirder world. We protect people from news they aren't ready to hear. And when we can't do that, we keep them safe. Something turns up, like this Chitauri neural link, we get to it before someone bad does,” Maria lectured.

Lindsey looked down, Maria was being serious then, this wasn’t the usual banter that usually occurred after missions. What was it this time? Another legend from the 40’s, like James B. Barnes? A rouge enhanced or two? Another assassin that needed to be put down but would end up working for S.H.I.E.L.D.?

“Any idea who Vanchat was planning to sell it to?” Ward asked, thinking.

“I'm more interested in how this Rising Tide group found out about it,” Maria replied.

“I thought they were just hackers, living in minivans trying to get under our skin, and it’s not like we yell this information out into the streets. What changed?” Lindsey asked.

“Everything's changing, Agent Maddox. You spent some time at Avengers Tower, so you should know this better than anyone. A little while ago, most people went to bed thinking that the craziest thing in the world was a billionaire in a flying metal suit. Then aliens invaded New York and were beaten back by, among others, a giant green monster, a costumed hero from the '40s, and a god,” Maria said.

“I don't think Thor's technically a god,” Ward pointed out.

“Well, you haven't been near his arms,” Lindsey chuckled, earning a small smile from Maria and a flat look from Ward.

“The battle of New York was the end of the world. This, now, is the new world. People are different. They have access to tech, to formulas, secrets they're not ready for,” Maria continued.

“Why were we pulled out of Paris?” Ward asked, growing impatient.

“That, you'll have to ask Agent Coulson,” Maria replied smoothly.

“Uh, yeah. We’re clearance level six. I know that Agent Coulson was killed in action before the battle of New York. We got the full report,” Ward said, looking at Maria like she was crazy.

“Welcome to level seven. Sorry... that corner was really dark, and I couldn't help myself. I think there's a bulb out.,” Phil said, walking out from the corner of the room.

“Holy Helicarrier…” Lindsey whispered.

~~~

“So… Director Fury faked your death, to motivate the Avengers?” Lindsey asked.

Hill replied first, “Well, the death of a common ally is a particularly effective team builder.”

“Say "cheese."” a female agent said, snapping pictures of Ward and Lindsey for their new clearance level 7 badges.

“Plus, it wasn't that much of a stretch. I stopped breathing for about 40 seconds,” Phil explained.

“Eight,” Maria corrected. “It gets longer every time you tell it.”

Phil smiled, “Yeah, well, you get shanked by the Asgardian Mussolini, you can tell it your way. I was looking at the big white light, and it felt like a lot longer than eight seconds.”

“Do they know? The Avengers? That Fury played them?” Ward asked.

“They're not level seven. I got out of the I.C.U., Fury stuck me in a grass shack in Tahiti,” Phil said.

“Rough gig,” Lindsey quipped sarcastically.

“Mai tais, Travis McGee novels, and a physical therapist whose command of English was irrelevant,” Phil informed them.

“But something put you back in the game. What is that?” Ward asked curiously.

“That's a superhero, Agent Ward. An unregistered gifted. Identity: unknown,” the Agent replied.

~~~

“The secret's out. For decades, your organization…” a feminine voice started, breaking away to a male news reporter. “On May 2nd, an unidentified object…”

“Another little present from The Rising Tide,” Phil said, gesturing to the

“How are they getting all of this stuff before us?” Lindsey asked, confused.

“Same way they cracked our RSA implementation. They're good. So I need better,” Coulson replied.

“Agent Coulson has requisitioned a mobile command unit, to which you are assigned,” Maria said.

“Rising Tide is trying to draw us out. I think it's time they succeeded,” Coulson looked at the two specialists.

“You want us to cross them off?” Lindsey asked incredulously.

“Wow. No. I want to use them to get to him. This man's world is about to get very weird. He's gonna need some help,” Phil replied, somewhat surprised.

“I'm sorry. I-” Ward started.

“We,” Lindsey interrupted.

“Right. We were trained from day one as specialists. We go in alone. We get it done. Defusing a nuclear bomb... I'm your guy, she’s your agent. A welcoming committee? Not our speed,” Ward stated.

“I know it's not what you two want. Agent Hill did a very detailed assessment of your last three missions. Combat: top grades. Espionage: she gave you the highest marks since Romanoff. Under "people skills," she drew a... I think it's a little poop with knives sticking out of it. What? It... That's bad, right? And given your family history, I'm surprised it's not worse. Maddox, same results except under “people skills” she drew a cactus in a pot. Wow, like a match made in heaven. Anyways, I think that you’re the agents for the job,” Coulson said, looking threw his files on them.

Dr. Streiten ducked his head into the room, “We’re meeting now.”

“If I'm wrong, you can both go straight back to your bombs,” Phil assured them

~~~

“Team's approved. Physicals are all fine. Fitz-Simmons is not cleared for combat,” the doctor ran through the list of agents joining the team.

“I'm told that won't be an issue,” Coulson replied confidently.

“Agent Ward here... he's almost too fit,” Streiten continued, casting a glance in Ward’s direction.

“That's an issue?” Lindsey asked, smiling slightly as she leaned against the table Ward was at.

“That should be an issue,” he replied.

“Maybe I can't join the team,” Ward shrugged.

‘Then maybe we could go home for a while…’ Lindsey thought.

“God, are you dismissed. Because my…” Phil started.

Hill pushed through the door, “It was a porcupine. It was not a poop. It just means that he…”

“No, I'm pretty sure.” Phil stopped her.

“And it's not just Ward. Your whole roster is sketchy,” Maria complained.

“Well, they're cleared,” Phil said smugly.

“I would have been very happy not to clear you, Phil. I'd love for you to rest up some more,” Maria worried.

“I've had plenty of that. Thanks,” Phil responded

“You sure?” Agent Hill questioned

Phil smiled, “You should go sometime.”

Hill raised an eyebrow, “Where?”

“Tahiti. It's a magical place,” Coulson replied.

Maria chuckled, “Three days in, I'd be begging for an assignment.”

“Exactly,” he said, proving his point to her and leaving with the two specialists, leaving the doctor and Maria in the examination room.

Hill stared at the door, “Tahiti… He really doesn't know, does he?

Dr. Streiten sighed, “He can never know.”

~~~

“I-is there any way I can thank him? Are you sure nobody saw him?” the woman said to the local authorities.

“So, the identity of the hooded hero still remains unknown,” a male reporter on the sidelines of the recently exploded building said.

“Researchers at UCLA Medical Center released a study today which shows that supplemental…” a female reporter continues.

~~~

“Just act natural,” the girl said, sitting at the booth and looking around, paranoid.

“What?” Mike questioned, looking away from the reporters outside.

“Just pretend that we're talking,” she replied.

“We are,” Mike said, confused.

“Good. 'Cause you never know who's listening,” the girl said, still looking about.

Mike stared at her, “I don't even know who's talking.”

A look of embarrassment flashed across the girl’s face, “I'm Skye. And you're the hooded hero. Please tell me that you're not staying with that name.”

“Wait. What? I'm not... I'm a factory worker,” Mike tried.

Skye scoffed, “Sure, by day. I saw you. You're a hero. Like, a for-real superhero, which is... I'm not, like, a groupie, stalker type, but…,” she laughed. “Oh, my god! That is so cool! Okay, okay, chill. Just don't... don't draw attention." Skye sighed, “You're in danger. “

Mike shook his head, “You got the wrong guy, lady.”

“No, you've got the wrong approach. The cute girl from the hospital is dying to thank you... and possibly "thank" you... And you're hiding. The clip of you rescuing her has had the most hits since that puppy with vertigo, And you can't even find a job,” Skye said.

“What do you mean about danger?” Mike asked hesitantly.

“S.H.I.E.L.D.” she replied quickly.

Mike looked at her, confused, “Shield, what? I should carry a shield?”

Skye shook her head, “S.H.I.E.L.D. Government. Scary men in dark suits who come after guys like you. They knew about the Battle of New York before it even happened and then cleaned it up before anyone could ask any real questions... overnight. How long do you think it'll take for them to clean you up?”

“And you want to know why I'm hiding,” Mike said, looking down.

“What if you didn't hide? What if you got in front of this and let people know that you're a hero?” Skye asked encouragingly.

Mike shook his head, “I'm just a guy.”

“Well, a guy like that gets work, gets perks. I can help. I'm great with computers... like, weirdly great. I mean, I could help you create a whole new identity or,” she gasped, “a mask. Okay. Uh, ok... well, you could just... also, we could just stick with the hood. Listen, you cannot walk away from this. With great power comes... a ton of weird crap that you are not prepared to deal with. Now, my office is…”

“You have an office?” Mike asked in disbelief

“Yes, I have an office. It's a mobile... office,” Skye sputtered, “It's a... van. I live in a van... by choice. But it's always in the alley around the corner... free wi-fi... and you can come by anytime.”

“Thank you,” Mike said, nodding once.

“They're coming for you. Mike,” Skye said as the man left, looking at the wallet she’d stolen, his ID inside.

~~~

“Agent May,” Coulson greeted.

“No,” came the Agent’s response.

“So you've been briefed,” Coulson nodded.

May kept working, “I'm not going back in the field.”

“Yeah. You've got such a nice setup here. You ever thought about adding a moat? I just need you to drive the bus, liaise ground transpo, some on-site supervision. This isn't a combat op,” Coulson pushed.

“Then you don't need me,” she replied, stapler clicking.

Phil smiled, “I do. 'Cause we'll be running ourselves. Picking the ops... Making the calls. No red tape. This is where they actually make the red tape, isn't it? I always wondered.”

“You're really just asking me to drive the bus?” Melinda asked.

“I'm not asking. But it's a really nice bus,” He said, walking away.

~~~

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Watch it! That's the night-night gun,” a Scottish accent rang out in the lab space of the Bus.

Well, it's on my stuff, and it doesn't work, and there's no way we're calling it the night-night gun,” a feminine British voice replied.

Lindsey sighed, she was once again in the same room as the science babies. They’d met before, but hadn’t left off on friendly terms. Now, here they were arguing away about one thing or another, it was driving her crazy.

“I'm not Hermione. I can't create instant paralysis with that. You should have run the specs by me before building the molds. The bullets are hollow. It's a marvel I can keep them from breaking apart in the chamber. Or used a higher-caliber round. Or read a book,” Simmons said.

‘Whatever that means…’ Lindsey thought, glancing up as Ward joined her in the doorway.

“Have you ever heard of physics or... What's the other one?... inertia? It's not particularly difficult,” Fitz said.

Ward dropped his bags loudly, making the two scientists look up. “Fitz-Simmons?”

Simmons pointed to Fitz, “Fitz.”

Fitz in turn pointed to his lab partner, “Simmons. I'm engineering. She's biochem.”

“Agent Ward and… Lindsey,” Simmons added the agent’s name harshly.

Lindsey rolled her eyes, and Ward simply glared.

“Coulson said I'd need my comm receiver encoded. Don't know if you've worked with that model before. It's…” Ward paused as Fitz smashed the comm with a mallet.

“Brand-new,” Lindsey finished for him. “Just not usable.”

“He'll re-purpose the I.D.I.S. chip,” Simmons said.

Fitz held up a small bit of the comm, “Don't need the external receiver for the inner-ear comms anymore.”

“So, uh, how does it…?” Lindsey asked, confused.

Simmons explained, “Embedded censoriousness silicone matched to your DNA. It's very posh. So, are you excited to be coming on our journey into mystery?”

“It's like Christmas,” Ward replied as Coulson drove up.

Fitz looked on, “One of Coulson's old S.H.I.E.L.D. collectibles. Flamethrowers, world's first GPS. He's mad for this crap.”

Lindsey smiled, “Lola returns.”

Ward looked at his partner, “You’ve seen this car before?”

“Yeah, when he bailed me out of jail after stealing S.H.I.E.L.D. documents. 14 days BW,” Lindsey replied.

Ward furrowed his eyebrows, “BW…?”

Lindsey chuckled, “Figure it out on your own. You're a big boy, aren't you?”

“Don't touch Lola,” Phil said as he got out of the car, speaking to the Bus’s engineer.

“And he calls it a girl's name,” Fitz said, smiling.

“Lola's not just a collectible, you know. People tend to confuse the words "new" and "improved." This mobile command, they were in heavy rotation back in the '90s, but then we got a helicarrier. Hey. Did you hear the one about the guy who's afraid of flying?” Phil asked.

Ward replied, “I've done a night jump into a drop zone under heavy fire, sir. I can handle it.”

Lindsey almost fell down laughing, “Oh my gods, Ward!”

“That was a... joke. The first part of a... I'm not gonna tell it now,” Phil said, looking confused.

May walked onto the Bus, “If you plan to unpack, make it quick. Wheels are up in five. We may have a hit on one of The Rising Tide's routing points.”

Phil nodded, “Good. We need to do some catching up.”

Melinda walked away without another word.

Ward watched as she left before turning to Coulson, “Is that... who I think it is?”

Phil shook his head, “She's just the pilot.”

“Ha! Melinda May is "just the pilot." Come on, Philip. We're not that stupid. What game are you really playing?” Lindsey questioned.

Phil ignored the question as the engines whirred, “Better stow your gear.”

~~~

“How will you come at us? From the air? From the ground? How will you silence us this time? How can you? The truth is in the wind. It's everywhere. You cannot stop The Rising Tide. You will not find us. You will never see our faces. But rest assured... We will rise against those who shield us from the truth. And nothing... nothing can stop us in the-” Skye stopped as the door opened. “Hey. What's up?”

~~~

“You guys are making a big mistake,” Skye said.

Ward crossed his arms, “You don't look that big.”

Coulson tried an apologetic approach, “Sorry for the lack of finesse. Agent Ward here has had a little history with your group... The Rising Tide.”

Skye denied his claims, “I don't know... what you're…”

Ward was done, “Okay, there are two ways we can do this.”

Skye interrupted, “Oh. Is one of them the easy way?”

“No,” Lindsey answered, coming to stand by Ward.

“Oh…” Skye responded, looking from Ward to Lindsey.

“What's your name?” Lindsey asked.

Skye answered easily, “Skye.”

Ward wasn't convinced, “What's your real name?”

Phil shook his head, “That can wait. It's another name we need... a certain hero.”

“What makes you think I know that?” Skye questioned.

“Well, you made a little mistake. The phone you filmed the hooded hero with had the same cryptographic signature as a few of The Rising Tide posts,” Phil replied.

Skye looked surprised, “Wow.”

“Yeah,” Phil responded.

Skye tried to play it off cool, leaning forward, “Was that a mistake? Or am I now sitting in the center of your secret headquarters? What is this? A plane? I got inside. And by now, you've discovered you can't beat the encryption on my equipment, so you got nothing.”

Phil smiled, “We have a fairly strong coincidence.”

“You being on the scene right before it went up in flames. You took the video with your phone right? Several people I talked to said they saw you Skye, you need to work on being inconspicuous,” Lindsey smirked.

“Want to tell me what my team is gonna find out? How did you know the hooded man was in the building? Did you blow it up to draw him out?” Phil questioned, his patience diminishing.

Skye became defensive, “Did you?”

It was more Phil's turn to be defensive, “That's not our style.”

Skye gave a small ‘ha’, “I was just kidnapped by your "style." S.H.I.E.L.D. covered up New Mexico, Project Pegasus. Of course you'd be covering up Centipede. Holy no way,” she said as she looked at Ward's confused face. “You don't know what that is. Billions of dollars of equipment at your disposal, and I beat you with a laptop that I won in a bet?”

Phil changed the topic, “You need to think about your friend. We're not the only ones interested in what he can do. What is Centipede?”

~~~

Simmons looked around the destroyed room, “This was a lab. Was this leased as a lab?”

May nodded, “Mnh-mnh.”

“Self-empowerment center. With a top-of-the-line motion-sensor security system,” Simmons said.

Fitz nodded, “Ah. So a secret lab. And a superhero. Not a coincidence.”

“So, was this explosion sabotage? Was it meant for him? Or were they just in over their heads?” May asked.

“We're working the problem-” Simmons started.

Fitz shushed them, “Ladies, if you'll just…”

Simmons apologized, “Sorry.”

May smiled at how unwilling Fitz was to dig through the wreckage, “If you're gonna be in the field, Agent Fitz, you have to get your hands dirty.”

Fitz shook his head, “No, I don't.” Three drones quickly took off and Fitz sang quietly, “Heigh-ho, off to work you go. “

~~~

Skye sighed, “Centipede... it was chatter on the web , and then gone. I traced the access-point MAC address to that building.”

“What were you after, Skye?” Lindsey asked cautiously.

“The truth. What are you after?” Skye snapped in return.

Phil answered before Lindsey, “World peace.”

Ward walked three steps closer, “You pseudo-anarchist hacker types love to stir things up. But you're never around for the fallout. People keep secrets for a reason, Skye.”

Skye walked closer as well, poking his chest, “Well, just because you're reasonable and... firm... doesn't mean that you're not an evil, faceless government tool bag.”

“Hands off,” Lindsey growled threateningly.

Skye backed away without complaint.

Phil sighed, “Just give us your guy's name.”

“He's not my guy!” Skye snapped.

“You understand he's in danger, don't you?” Phil asked.

Skye nodded, “Then let me go. Let me talk to him. Me, not the T-1000 here and his possessive girlfriend.”

Ward three his hands up in the air, “You want to be alone with him. Of course. She's a groupie. All this hacking into S.H.I.E.L.D., tracking powers... she might as well be one of those sweaty cosplay girls crowding around Stark Tower.”

“What?! I would... It was one time,” Skye sputtered.

Lindsey smirked, “The truth comes out.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

Phil placed his hands on the holotable, “Ward. Is it the girl? She getting under your skin?”

Ward paused, “Sir?”

Phil continued his questioning, “Or is it the assignment? Are you so anxious to get out of this that you'd deliberately blow an interrogation?”

“Give me a minute alone with her, you'll have your answers,” Ward promised.

“Leave you alone with her? Ha, as if, Grant,” Lindsey muttered.

Ward chuckled softly. Skye was right about one thing, Lindsey could be a bit possessive.

“She's an asset,” Phil said, looking at the two Agents.

Ward sighed in relief, “She is such an a... wait... "asset"?”

“Are you sure you didn't mispronounce something?” Lindsey questioned.

Phil rolled his eyes, “We don't know anything about her. Do you appreciate how often that happens? That never happens. We need what she knows.”

~~~

Simmons was explaining the dwarf drones to May, “See, we designed each with their own capabilities, so, um, some recording the dimensions and textures of the room, and then some testing the matter density, radiation. I mean, one is basically just smelling.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I've got something in something,” Fitz interrupted.

Simons looked at him, “Who's got it?”

“Uh... Bashful,” Fitz replied, pointing.

Simmons cooed, “Aww.” She walked over to the drone, looking at the wreckage, “Surveillance camera. Deep-fried.”

Fitz nodded, “Yes, but that model has flash memory in case of brownouts. Now, I could sync that with data from the motion detectors and, with a little luck, get some images from before the blast. And by "luck," I mean "unappreciated genius." Yeah, we'll need it. Snow's reading some compounds that are... Whoa. My god.”

May stepped forward, “Explosive?”

“Not of this earth,” Simmons said slowly.

~~~

Phil walked around the interrogation room, “This is QNB-T16.”

“Dang that's a long tag,” Lindsey muttered.

“It's the top-shelf Martini of Sodium Pentothal derivatives. It's a brand-new and extremely potent truth drug. Don't worry. The effects only last about an hour,” Phil said.

“And you'll have a nice little nap,” Ward started, “and we'll have all the answers to our… Hey! What the hell?!” Ward shouted.

Phil apologized sarcastically, removing the needle from his neck, “I'm sorry. Did that hurt?”

Ward rolled his shoulders, “No. But you've lost your mind. You should never do that to a member of your team. And, yes, it did hurt a little bit. But I always try and mask my pain in front of beautiful women 'cause I think it makes me seem more masculine. My god, this stuff works fast.”

Lindsey laughed, she’d never known that about Ward.

Phil turned to Skye, “Don't trust us? Ask him whatever you'd like.”

“Ow!” Lindsey shouted as Phil injected the serum into her as well.

Phil smiled, “Her too.”

Ward protested as Phil began leaving, “Wait a minute. Wait. You can't just… This is definitely not protocol…”

“Too right,” Lindsey agreed, shifting uncomfortably.

Skye grinned, “You seem nervous, Agent Lindsey. “

Lindsey took deep breathes, “I will not give information to a child bent on taking down SHIELD.”

“Have you ever killed anyone? Either of you?” Skye questioned.

Ward answered immediately, “Yes, a few. High-risk targets. But they were terrible people... Who were trying to murder nice people. And I didn't feel good afterwards.”

Lindsey struggled, fighting against the serum. It hurt, it physically hurt to resist. “Yes. I-i have killed.. a lot of people- Ah! Some were… younger than you… “ Lindsey choked out.

Skye looked surprised, “Why?”

Agent Maddox shook her head violently, she didn't need to revisit that part of her past, but the serum forced her to. “I was an assassin, for bad people, they were terrible…”

Ward looked at his mission partner, worried, “Lindsey?”

She said nothing in return, shaking her head and silently crying.

~~~

Coulson looked at Skye from across the table, “Did Agent Ward or Agent Lindsey give you anything?”

“They told me they've been to Paris, but he's never really seen it and that Ward wishes you had stayed in Tahiti. I didn't question Maddox as much, I felt bad after the first question. What’s her story?” Skye asked.

Phil smiled sadly. “That, you’ll have to ask her yourself, assuming she’ll talk to you after this.”

Skye went on, “Ward doesn't like your style. Kind of think I do.”

“What about his?” Phil asked, gesturing at the screen showing a man in the hospital, “Remains in critical condition. Employees could not identify the attacker, but security footage confirms that this man assaulted the factory foreman before damaging thousands of dollars' worth of company property.”

Skye shook her head, “This is wrong. This is not the guy I met. He was... With us here on KZQM25. He just needs a break.”

“Then give him one,” Phil said.

“What have you got?” Skye asked.

Coulson pulled up Mike's file, “Michael Peterson... factory worker, married, one kid. Gets injured, gets laid off. Wife jumps ship. Good guy, bad breaks. Best guess is, somebody tells him they can make him strong again, make him super. Who has the tech to do that? And why would they want to? Fitz, what do we have from the security footage before the blast? What are we seeing?”

“Well, the man is angry at the other man,” Fitz replied.

Simmons backed him up, “The data is very corrupt.”

Fitz nodded, “Yeah, like cold war Russia corrupt. Yeah. I-I can't sync the timecode without…”

“What if you had the audio?” Simmons asked.

Skye spoke up, “I was... running surveillance on the lab. I had my shotgun mic pointed at the window before the blast. The digital files in my van. There's too much background noise for me, But you could probably... You can clean that up, can't you? Find a sync point and use cross-field validation to find... But I can't scrub for expression patterns when the vit-c is all…”

“Well, is there a chrominance subcarrier?” Fitz asked.

Skye nodded, “Yeah, attached to the back porch.”

Fitz smiled, “Brilliant. Um, that audio would be great.”

“Thank you very, very much. We will take that audio, please. Your van's here, but you were right... We couldn't decrypt the files,” Phil said.

Skye nodded, “The encryption is coupled to the GPS. Get my van back to that alley, and then I'm in business.”

“Agent May will escort you. And on your way out, wake up Ward and Lindsey,” Phil agreed.

~~~

Lindsey woke up slowly, blinking as her eyes adjusted. Skye crouched above her, holding her brown hair out of her face.

“Hey,” Skye greeted hesitantly, “You okay?”

The agent groaned, sitting up, “Besides spilling my guts to you about Grant relationship with me and a splitting headache? I'm peachy.”

Skye sighed, “I guess that's not a good first impression of myself… “

“It's okay, I've gone though through much worse…” Lindsey whispered.

“Ngh,” Ward groaned, sitting up. “Linds, you okay, babe?”

Lindsey blushed, “Skye's here…”

Skye giggled at the Agent's embarrassment.

Ward looked at his mission partner, “That doesn't answer my question.”

Lindsey glanced at him, “I'll be better when this is over and we can go home.”

~~~

“Audio file should be coming through. It's not compressed, so it might take a minute. Uh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm getting it. So, uh, uh, when... when you get back, I'll show you my thing. A thing. It's not... I-it's my hardware. My equipment. Let's... hang up,” Fitz said, flushed,

“So, the alien metal wasn't the explosive?” Phil asked.

Simmons continued with her work, answering, “Well, I assumed from the break pattern and dispersion that it was, but it's just dripping with gamma radiation and... Oh! Now it's actually dripping. Fun.”

“So, what did that get us?” Phil questioned.

Fitz replied this time, “Skye's sending us the rest of her decrypted files on Centipede. But we have her audio. I've loaded it up. Nice work. Now, using motion estimation, Bayesian inference, a beam splitter, and a little diffraction theory, Our mystery man... appears. It's like magic. But it's... it's science.

Ward nodded toward the man, “Explosives in the case?”

The lab assistant in the projected scene looked terrified, “-please calm down. Just let me check your vitals.”

“I feel fine. I want to feel more. Where's the doctor? Where is she?” the mystery man questioned.

“I-if you don't settle down, I-I'll have you sedated,” the assistant trembled.

Man yelled his question this time, “Where is she?!”

“Stop the playthrough,” Lindsey ordered.

Fitz silently reversed the scene.

“Look at his arm, it’s just below his sleeve,” Lindsey said, pointing.

Phil turned to the group, “What does that look like to you?”

Simmons answered through the phone, “A centipede. It's an intravenous filter for his blood. This goo, sir, it’s very similar to the serum Dr. Erskine developed in the '40s for the super soldiers. I'm reading alien metal, gamma radiation, the serum... every known source of superpower thrown in a blender.”

“We need to see the origin of the blast. Run it back from the last point recorded,” Phil ordered.

~~~

Skye pressed the last few buttons on her laptop, “That should do it.”

May nodded, “Let's head back.”

“All right, let me just…” Skye was interrupted as the door of her van flew open and May was thrown against the brick wall of the alleyway. “Mike. What are you doing?”

“Saving you. From the scary men in dark suits. And you're gonna help save us,” Mike replied.

Skye tilted her head slightly, “"us"?”

Ace whimpered as his father pulled him into Skye’s view.

Mike kneeled down to him, “Don't cry. Okay? Stay strong for me, Ace. What are we?”

“We're a team,” Ace replied.

Mike nodded, getting Ace and himself in the car, “That's right. Now drive.”

~~~

“Extremis. It's new. Completely unstable. Poor man didn't bring an explosive. And Mike has the same stuff in his system. And judging by his strength level, a lot more,” Phil said, going on about the serum.

Fitz nodded, “So any minute now, Mike is gonna…” He used hand gestures to simulate an explosion.

“He'll take out anyone within a two-block radius,” Ward said.

“Hey Fitz, you want to be dropped off somewhere closer to Mike?” Lindsey asked.

Phil sighed, “Lindsey that’s not appropriate in a team setting. And Ward, you wanted a bomb.”

“Sir?” Simmons spoke through the phone, “He didn't explode because he was angry. The two are connected. It... it's kind of a chemical surge. But calming him down will buy him a minute at most. He will detonate within the next few hours.”

“Solution?” Phil asked.

Simmons sounded distressed, “Isolate him, get him away from people.”

“Or?” Coulson questioned.

Simmons sighed, “Put a bullet through his brain. If he's dead, this irradiated metabolic process will stop.”

Phil shook his head, “We need to come up with a third option... one that doesn't involve Mike's son losing a father.”

“We have a couple of hours at most. There's no way that we could possibly…” Simmons was interrupted.

“Don't ever tell me there's no way! It's on you. Get it done,” Phil nearly shouted.

The transmitter of May’s responder beeped.

“May?” Phil asked.

May responded quickly, “He took Skye.”

“You alright?” Phil asked, concerned.

“We'll deal with that later... at length. Right now, we need to figure out where they went,” May replied.

~~~

Fitz was getting frustrated, extremely so, “Come on. Give me more paralysis. No, less rigor mortis! Oh, come on! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.”

“Just pretend it's an exam. We're taking an exam,” simmons said, trying

Fitz nodded, “An exam... yeah. Yeah. Okay. I don't want an "F." "F" equals a massacre. Whoa. Oh, no!”

“What is this nonsense? Why are you making nonsense?!”

Fitz shouted back, “This isn't me! It's noise. Someone's hacking our secure channel.”

Phil walked to a SHIELD car immediately, “It's longitude and latitude. Mike took Skye. She's telling us where.”

~~~

Mike was talking to Ace gently as Skye got their tickets for the train, “We'll take the nice lady with us. We... we... we can't go to the airport, So we'll... we'll take a train. And there, she'll... she'll help us start over, Make a new life... A better life, like I always said.”

~~~

Ward looked around the train station, “Look at this place. You're gonna risk thousands of lives over some nobody.”

Nobody's nobody, Ward. Fitz-Simmons will come through,” Phil reprimanded, turning on the megaphone, “Mr. Peterson, good morning. We're not a threat. We're here to help. But you're in danger, and we need to take you in.”

Mike turned to Skye, “What did you do?!”

“Please return to check-in counter,” the ticket lady said.

Mike muttered under his breath, “Yeah, we won't.”

Skye kneed a man between the legs as Mike dragged her past, “You're right... he is a little bitch.”

“Yo, get him! Get him!” the man exclaimed, sending his buddies after Mike.

“Ace, get back!” Mike said in a commanding tone.

“Get out the way, man! Come on! Come on, now!” the man and his thugs were still gunning for Mike and Skye took the opportunity to grab Ace and run.

Mike looked around for Ace frantically after shaking the men, “Ace!”

Ace looked at Skye, scared, “I want my daddy.”

Skye wiped his tears, “I promise.”

A kind woman agent took Ace by the hand, “Come on, honey.”

Mike was still frantically searching for his son,  “Ace! Ace! Oh!”

Lindsey crept behind Mike, and restrained him in a choke hold. It was impossible to do more than make the man pass out by doing this, she knew that, she had been taught that.

Phil walked up, “Look... the stuff inside you is unstable. It'll kill you and everyone in here.”

Mike threw Lindsey off, tossing her into a pillar, “Who's gonna miss us?!”

Gunshots sounded and Lindsey screamed.

Phil put a finger to his ear, “We're at the north entrance, May. You told them to hold fire.”

“I don't think that's us. We may have a third party here,” May replied.

“He's gonna head down to the tracks. You stay high. I'll go low. Only take the shot if you have to, Ward. Ward!” Phil shouted into the comms.

“If I have to,” Ward responded. “Do you have eyes on Agent Maddox?”

“Here,” Lindsey whimpered, weakly pressing two fingers to her comm link before losing all consciousness.

Skye shouted at Mike, “You got to stop! These people can help you.”

“The men in suits? They're your buddies now? Where did they take my son?!” Mike grunted.

“Get down!” Phil shouted at the local law enforcement, cocking his gun.

Mike huffed, “Think that means anything? I know you got men everywhere waiting to put me down. I know how this plays out.”

“I don't. I know you got poison in your system. I know it's burning you up. Mike, the last guy who wore that exploded,” Phil said gently.

Mike shook his head, “I'm not like that other guy. I'm... It matters who I am... inside, if I'm a good person, if I'm strong.”

Ward spoke into his comm,  “I have a clear shot. Do you copy?”

“I know you're strong. Your boy knows it. He needs you to let us help.” Phil said.

“You took him!” Mike yelled, his voice breaking, “You took my wife, my job, my house. You think this is killing me?! All over, there's people being pushed down, being robbed. One of them tries to stand up, you got to make an example out of him.”

Phil looked him in the eyes, “You bring this building down on us, will that help them?”

“That's a lie! All you do is lie! You said if we worked hard... if we did right... we'd have a place. You said it was enough to be a man. But there's better than man. There's gods. And the rest of us... What are we? They're giants. We're what they step on,” Mike protested.

Phil nodded, “ I know. I've seen giants... up close. And that privilege cost me... nearly everything. But the good ones... the real deal... they're not heroes because of what they have that we don't. It's what they do with it. You're right, Mike. It matters who you are.”

Mike slowly calmed, “I could, you know? Be a hero.”

“I'm counting on it,” Phil said.

A single shot rang through the station. Ward lowered his new gun, and fitz stood beside him, holding the sniper rifle. Mike fell to the ground, sedated and unconscious.

“Subject is in stable condition. All clear at Union Station,” Phil said, “Agent Maddox may need medical attention, Agent Simmons, get the Med-bay ready.”

~~~

Lindsey woke to a blinding white light, a splitting headache, and several pains in her back. As her eyes adjusted, she could clearly see Simmons holding a tablet, taking notes. The agent glanced to the side and smiled, Ward had fallen asleep at her bedside.

“Grant,” she said quietly.

Ward shifted and sat up, blinking tiredly, “Hey, you’re up.”

“Yeah. What happened after I went down?” Lindsey asked.

“Fitz-Simmons got the new tranquilizers working, and Mike Peterson is now in SHIELD custody, getting the help he needs. I think Coulson is offering a position on the team to Skye,” Ward filled her in.

She nodded slowly, “Okay… Never thought we’d end up working with a hacker from the Tide.”

“Everything's changing,” Ward said.

There was silence for a few moments.

“BW, I think I figured it out,” Ward said finally.

Lindsey smiled, “And?”

Grant smiled as well, “Before Ward, right?”

His partner nodded, “Yeah,”

Ward kissed her head gently.

~~~

Skye walked back down to Phil and Lola after talking to Ace’s aunt about what had happened, “I told him his father was coming home.”

Phil nodded, “He will. We have some experience with this. He almost blew. We almost died. We have some experience with that, too. Don't have it all mapped out. True. We didn't cut off the head of the Centipede. Whoever sponsored that little experiment is still out there, among other things. It's a brave new world.”

“And a really old car,” Skye said, nodding to Lola as she got in.

Phil chuckled, “Lola can keep up. What about you? Have you thought about the offer? Hitching a ride on the crazy plane?”

“I'm not exactly a team player,” Skye replied.

Phil smiled, “We're not exactly a team. But we're in a position to do some good. You'd be a great help. And you'd be front row center at the strangest show on earth, Which is, after all, what you wanted.”

Skye raised an eyebrow, “I was able to hack S.H.I.E.L.D. from my van. You're gonna show me something new?”

Phil clicked his phone as it started to ring, “Go.”

May answered, “Sir, we've got an 0-8-4.”

Phil looked surprised, “Is that confirmed?”

“They want us to go in and confirm it,” May responded.

Phil hung up and started the car.

“What’s an 0-8-4?” Skye asked.

Phil looked at her, “You've got exactly 10 minutes to decide if you really want to know.”

Skye laughed. “There's no way we can make it to the airfield in…”

She paused as Lola’s wheels turned in, becoming jets.

“10 minutes,” Phil said, “The tide is rising.”


	2. 0-8-4

Ward scoffed, “Skye? Girl's not qualified to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent.”

Phil nodded, “Agreed. That's why I've invited her on as a consultant. [ Beep ] S.H.I.E.L.D. does it all the time. Technically, Stark's a consultant. And technically, Skye's a member of the Rising Tide. She hacked our RSA implementation -- Twice. From a laptop. Imagine what she'll do with our resources.”

“Stark is a consultant but that doesn’t mean you let him join you on missions,” Lindsey stated.

Ward cast a glance at at his partner, “I am imagining. That's exactly what I'm imagining during this frown. You brought me on for risk assessment. She's a risk. She doesn't think like us.”

“Exactly,” Phil replied. “But your frown is noted.”

~~~

Simmons walked up to Skye happily, “Oh, Agent Coulson told us the news. What a wonderful surprise. Isn't it, Fitz?”

Fitz nodded slowly, “Yeah. No, it's wonderful. Yeah, a surprise. You must be very excited.”

“Yep, first day of school. Okay, so... just -- sorry. Yeah,” she replied, adjusting her grip on her box of belongings. 

~~~

“We have two kids on this bus who aren't cleared for combat. You're adding a third. At least Fitz-Simmons are trained S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists. But Skye? You said this was a select team. Assembled to work new cases, to protect people. I don't see how letting some hacker tag along --” Ward started.

“I'm looking for an objection I haven't already anticipated. I'm calling this. But your frown will be on record. We've been called in to investigate an 0-8-4. We all know what that means.” Phil interrupted.

“Yes, we do,” Lindsey agreed. “It means we don't know what that means.”

~~~

“Officially, it's an airborne mobile command station. But we call it the bus. We find it best to use shorthand when in the field. But everything has to be just so, you know, because of the danger,” Fitz said, trying to explain to Skye why the plane was called the Bus.

Skye nodded, “Yeah, I've been up here before, but I didn't see much because of the bag that Agent Ward and Agent Maddox put over my head.”

“Yes, so sorry about that. Water?” simmons asked.

May walked past, not looking at the scientists or at Skye, “Wheels up in two. Lock it or lose it.”

Skye looked confused, “What's that mean?”

Simmons smiled, “No backing out now. Let's find a bunk for our guest.”

“Oh, oh, yeah, there's only one left, and it's right next to mine. Sorry. You can…” Fitz trailed off and started walking away with Simmons as Ward and Lindsey approached.

Skye sighed, “Hey. I know we didn't really-”

Ward handed her the safety pamphlet, “Might want to read that. This isn't like other planes.”

Skye looked around, “You can say that again.”

Phil joined them, “Say what again?” 

Skye nodded to the general area, “Sweet ride.”

“I earned a little goodwill from Director Fury when I got hit right before the battle of New York,” Phil said.

Skye raised an eyebrow, “ You took a bullet? 

Phil shrugged, “Ish. An Asgardian stabbed me through the heart with a Chitauri scepter. The effect was similar. Got a few weeks' R&R and this plane. Had it completely refurbished. Studs up -- spared no expense.”

Lindsey looked at anything and anyone except for Phil as he told his short story. She'd been there, she had known what would happen, and yet she'd done nothing to prevent it. Most who weren't fond of her said that she even encouraged the action. Ward touched her just below the elbow, silently communicating that they should go, so she moved past Phil and Skye and made her way to the bunks.

Skye nodded, “Yeah, Agent Ward told me they sent you to Tahiti.”

Phil smiled, “It's a magical place.”

“You mentioned that,” Skye said, raising an eyebrow.

Phil lifted Skye's drink and set a small leather clad coaster under it, “Here. Use a coaster. Buckle up.”

“I don't even know where we're going,” Skye reminded him.

“Peru. That's where the 0-8-4 was reported,” Phil replied.

Skye looked confused, “And an 0-8-4 is...?”

Phil smiled, “An object of unknown origin. Kind of like you. Team goes in, determines if it's useful or if it poses a threat. Last one turned out to be pretty interesting.”

“And what was the last one?” Skye asked.

“A hammer.”

~~~

“What was that back there?” Ward asked, closing the door to his bunk.

Lindsey sat on the bed and looked down, avoiding his prying eyes.

Ward sighed, “Linds, you gotta talk to me.”

She looked up, “I promised to you once that I would never try to talk to you about your past, in return you promised not to discuss my record with SHIELD.”

“I know, I know, but Lindsey I know when something is bothering you and you need to talk about it,” Ward replied softly.

“I was there,” Lindsey whispered, “I was there, Grant. I watched the man who treated me like his own child die. And I did nothing. I looked at Loki and I…”

She took a deep breath, she'd only told this story to Romanoff, who had slapped her afterwards.

“I smiled at him, just a pure, genuine smile. And then he smiled in return and disappeared. By the time that Fury and Maria had arrived, Phil had died and I had left, but footage got that I was there and most believe that I helped with Coulson's murder and that Maria and Fury are covering it up because, well, you know...” Lindsey finished.

Lindsey looked at her partner questioningly, searching his face for disgust or hatred. There was none, only the affection they shared as mission partners.

Grant pulled Lindsey to her feet gently and brought her into a warm embrace. Lindsey sighed happily and wrapped her arms around his neck. What had she ever done to deserve a partner like Ward?

~~~

May looked at the damp earth, “Tire tracks 40 meters back. I'll check them against the site's trucks, make sure we're alone. Too much exposure here. 

Ward rolled down the window of the van, “I'm gonna find a place to park.”

Fitz looked up as an animal chattered in the forest canopy above them, “I would love to see a capuchin in the wild. Maybe even a yellow-tailed woolly monkey. You know, um, Peru has 32 different species of monkey. Yeah, and close to 200 species of snakes. The shushupe has a fascinating ven-- venom. It's neurotoxic, proteolytic, and hemolytic.”

Skye chuckled nervously, “That's fascinating.”

Simmons nodded, “Yeah.” 

“Oh. No, I'd be much more concerned with earthquakes, mala--” Fitz paused to slap a bug that landed on his arm, “Ah. There's no vaccine for dengue fever.”

“Leo, stop, you’re scaring the other kids,” Lindsey said, crossing her arms as they walked.

“Oh, wow…” Fitz said in awe, ignoring Lindsey’s comment.

The site of the 0-8-4 was an ancient Peruvian temple.

“We should warn the people who live around here if the 0-8-4 is dangerous. They're already dealing with anti-mining rebels and the shining path guerillas,” Phil said, scanning the area.

“I could post something,” Skye suggested.

“Remember the panic when that antimatter meteor splashed down just off the coast of Miami, nearly devoured the city?” Phil questioned.

“That was a doozy,” Lindsey muttered.

Skye shook her head, “No.”

“Precisely. Because we kept it quiet and contained,” Phil said.

“So, what am I doing?” Skye asked.

“Well, if it gets out, I might need you to create some kind of diversion, put the public on the wrong scent,” Coulson replied.

“So everything that I'm against?” Skye asked/

Phil nodded an affirmative, “Yep.”

Phil walked to where some people were taking photos and samples, “Good morning, Professor. I'm Agent Coulson with S.H.I.E.L.D. I understand you've made an interesting discovery.” 

The professor sighed, “I-I'm not sure how to explain it. This temple dates back at least 500 years. It's filled with pre-Incan artifacts. One of them is impossible and looks like it might be dangerous.”

Phil was about to answer when he heard a shriek from the other side of the clearing. He turned quickly hand on his gun, only to find Ward hugging and spinning Agent Maddox from behind. What had ever happened to professionalism on site? He’d have to talk to them later.

Phil turned back to the professor, smiling apologetically, “Well, that's why we're here.” 

Professor nodded to a few of his assistants, “Watch out.” He led Phil to the device that was inside the temple, “Exactly as we found it.” 

Phil nodded, “Who else knows about this?” 

“Just the ministry. I believe they are the ones who contacted you,” the professor replied.

“Sir, I need you and your team to evacuate the site until we determine the risk associated with this object,” Phil suggested as Fitz walked into the scene with his equipment.

The professor's assistants moved to block his view of the 0-8-4

“Leave the man alone.” the Professor instructed, and the assistants moved away.

“Now go, for your own safety,” Phil said.

The professor and his assistant gathered their equipment and left as quickly as they could.

“Nothing about this anywhere. It's amazing. I searched every data stream,” Simmons said, looking down at her holopad.

“What do you got here, guys?” Phil asked as he went ti touch the 0-8-4.

“Whoa, car-- uh, careful. I-I -- no, wouldn't do that,” Fitz said, stopping him. “The object's placement in fossiliferous rock formations suggests it's been here for at least 1,500 years. That pre-dates this temple by a millennium.”

Simmons smiled, “Ah! Maybe it's alien.”

“Yeah, but the shape and the craftsmanship -- it's almost German,” Fitz stated.

~~~

May walked back to the site, “Tires match the prof's truck.”

“Where's your sidearm?” Ward asked curiously. 

“If I need a gun, I'll take one,” May replied shortly.

Ward cast a sideways glance towards the woman, “Right. Forgot I was working with "the cavalry."”

“Don't ever call me that,” May said threateningly. 

“Grant, stop pushing!” Lindsey hissed.

Ward ignored his partner, “Apologies. I've heard the stories -- what went down in in Bahrain, about you in action. You know, it was smart of Coulson to pull you out of retirement. It's nice to have a trusted friend who has your back.”

They all fell silent as armed vehicles approached and men with guns shouted in Spanish.

“Drop it! Move!” May shouted in return.

“Should have taken more guns,” Ward told May.

 

May ignored his quip, “Drop the guns! now!”

“Sir?” Lindsey asked into the comm links.

Phil replied immediately, “Go.”

“We have a situation. Lots of rebels in this area. Not enough gunfire. We’re surrounded too,” Lindsey said.

“Keep working. I'm on my way,” Phil answered, walking from the temple. “Good morning. I'm Agent Coulson. We are here on a matter of international security,” he said in spanish.

“Philip?” the commander asked.

Phil tilted his head slightly, “Camilla?” 

“Philip, do you mind?” she asked, gesturing to the guns Ward and Lindsey had pointed at her.

“After you,” coulson replied.

“Lower your weapons,” Camilla spoke to her troops.

The soldiers immediately put the weapons at their sides with a, “Yes, commander.” 

Camila smiled, “ And now for a proper hello.”

The commander strode forward and kissed Phil on the cheek. Behind them, Lindsey looked at Grant and faked a gagging motion. Ward cracked a small smile at his partner’s actions.

Phil nodded in gesture to the woman’s badges, “Comandante -- a promotion. Congratulations.”

“Three years ago. But thank you,” Camila nodded.

“Agent Melinda May, Agent Grant Ward, Agent Lindsey Maddox, this is comandante Camilla Reyes. She's with the Policía Militar del Perú. We used to work together back in the day,” Phil said in introduction. “Let the team know everything's okay.” 

“I know you've found a strange object on Peruvian soil. We should have a conversation about how to proceed,” Camila said as Ward walked to the temple with Maddox.

Phil nodded, “Of course. But an 0-8-4 supersedes all national claims.”

“You look good,” Camilla commented, changing the subject.

“Yeah, I work out,” Phil joked.

Camilla smiled, “Come, let me show you something.”

~~~

Simmons looked down at the beeping device, “ Are you seeing this? It's alive.”

“Wha-- alive alive?” Skye questioned.

Fitz nodded, “It has a functioning power source. Sleepy's reading radionuclides, but they don't match any known isotope. I get temporal matches, but even then, they seem to shift.

“Is that even possible?” skye asked.

‘Depends on the shifting of the temporal radio stuff, so... “ Fitz trailed off.

“It's totally weird, right? I'm gonna go check on Coulson,” Skye said, beginning to exit the temple when Ward and Lindsey entered.

“We've got company. National police,” Lindsey said, stopping Skye.

“What? Why are they here?” Simmons asked. 

“They heard about this object. They're probably here to protect it. This area has lots of rebel uprisings,” Ward replied calmly.  

“Yeah, people are fighting back against the government's mining policies. It's pretty kick-ass,” Skye said. 

“Yeah, it's kick-ass, all the violence,” Ward responded sarcastically.

“All the daily deaths. Women losing husbands, children losing fathers and even mothers who get caught in crossfire,” Lindsey joined in. This may have been something but it was not “kick-ass.” 

Skye sighed, “That's not what I'm saying. 

Ward shook his head, “No, it's what you're typing. In your van, alone -- where it's safe.”

The Rising Tide may want the truth, and you may want change, but you’ve never seen what the truth and what real earth shattering change looks like,” Lindsey said, looking directly at Skye.   
“How much longer?” Ward asked. 

“What's the hurry? Are we in danger?” Fitz responded.

“Not if everyone does their job, Ward replied before looking at Skye, “What is yours, exactly?” 

Gunshots sounded before Skye could get in a proper answer.

“Rebels. Stay close. On my six,” Ward told Lindsey. “Let's go. They're coming for it. Let's move!” he yelled to Fitz.

“No. No, no, no, no, no,” Fitz replied, desperately trying to carefully extract the 0-8-4 from the rock. 

“It doesn't matter, Leo!” Lindsey yelled.

“It does to me!” Fitz yelled in response

“Please, let us do this. We need a containment case for the 0-8-4,” Simmons begged.

“There's no time,” Wrd yelled over the gunfire. 

“But it has a fluctuating power core -- frequencies way above 10 exahertz,” Simmons began. 

“Sorry. Science class is over,” Ward interrupted, pulling the 0-8-4 from the wall with a groan.

‘Hot damn…’ Lindsey thought to herself.

Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait. You did not just pull that out of the wall. What is the matter with you?! Do you realize we do not know the amount of photon emissions coming out of this -- okay. We don't know what will happen if it gets excited,” Fitz shouted.

Ward ignored him, “Stay close.” 

“Loe let’s move,” Lindsey said, dragging the scientist by the arm. 

“Your men need to fall back now, or we'll never make the runway. Now -- your truck. Let's go!” Phil ordered,  “Get back! Tell your men to get down.”

Camilla began to shout orders to her men in spanish.

“Watch out!” May yelled as she drove the SHIELD van into the clearing.

“Get in! Get in! Move! Now!” Ward said, shoving both Simmons, Skye, and Fitz in the back.

Lindsey hopped into the front quickly, sitting on the center console.

“You’re going to get shot, Maddox,” May commented as Ward got into the passenger seat.

“No seats,” Lindsey replied quickly.

Ward pulled Lindsey down onto his lap without so much as thinking to consider what he was doing, “Coulson's secure in PMP's truck. Take the south route to the airfield.”

Lindsey yelped as the car jerked forward, gripping Ward’s shoulder.

“Gotcha,” May responded.

“Slow down!” Fitz yelled.

“You're joking, right?” Ward asked.

“Ward, listen! We have to be careful. There's a binding energy structure that could overheat. I could roll down a window!  Aah!” Fitz screamed as bullets ricocheted off the van.  

“Do not roll down a window! Stay quiet and keep your heads down,” Ward ordered the scientists. “Head left. The ravine empties,” he instructed May.

“But, Ward!” Fitz whined.

“Quiet!” May, Lindsey, and Ward shouted in sync.

“How fast can you have the wheels up?” Ward questioned as the van pulled into the Bus’ hangar.

“Fast. Get the ramp,” May replied, running from the car.

“On it,” Lindsey said, leaping from Ward’s lap.

“What are you doing?! Coulson is still out there!” Fitz shouted. 

“Get off the ramp. You're in the line of fire,” Lindsey warned as Phil ran up the ramp with Camilla and a few of her soldiers. “Cut it pretty close, sir.”

“Didn't want to leave anyone behind,” Phil replied as the ramp clamped shut.

Skye sighed, “I got to say it. I miss my van.”  
“Now, what was the problem?” Phil asked. 

“As I said before, this device has a high-frequency, fluctuating, sub-material compression -- “ Leo started to explain.

“Fitz, in English,” Ward interrupted.

“The 0-8-4 is fueled by tesseract technology. Hydra. World War II. Captain America. It's full of lethal amounts of gamma radiation,” Fitz started again. 

“Gamma -- you're saying it's nuclear?” Ward asked.

“It’s so much worse…” Lindsey said slowly.

~~~. 

“And the 0-8-4 is in your possession?” Maria said from HQ.

“It's on board and contains a tesseract fuel cell, so… there's that,” Phil replied.

“Copy. You are a go for check-in guidance through restricted airspace. Safe travels,” Maria said, logging off.

Phil sighed, “Top speed's a priority, May. Obviously. I know you didn't want to see combat. I apologize for that. Do you need anything else before I go check on the device fueled by evil that's sitting in our cargo hold?”

~~~ 

“Not to worry. The device is stable. Not that it couldn't explode at any minute, especially if hit with machine-gun fire. But things like this happen from time to time when in the field, and at first, it's very unpleasant, and you regret your decision to leave the lab at all,” Simmons rambled to herself.

“Are you mental? I did explain in great detail exactly what I meant, using the queen's bloody English!” Fitz yelled at Ward.

Lindsey sighed, “We’re not all scientists kid.”

“I use normal English --- words like "duck" and "run" and "might blow us to pieces."” Ward commented. 

“Oh. Oh! Well, congratulations, Agent Ward. You managed to string three words together in a sentence,” Fitz replied in a sarcastic manner.

Lindsey gave a low, primal growl, which startled the scientist.

“I'm trying to tell you --” Fitz began. 

“ ...Don't understand anything you are saying!” Ward shouted.

“Do we have a problem in here?” Phil asked, walking into the lab

Ward shook his head, “No, sir. Just working on our communication.”

“Not everyone was prepared for a firefight. We got out, didn't lose anyone, saved a few of theirs -- I'd say we did all right. Anything else?” Phil asked. 

Skye raised her hand, “Uh, yeah. I have a small question. Because I've been feeling like the tagalong hayseed rookie, but now I get the sense that Ward doesn't know which one's Simmons and which one's Fitz, and they've seen even less gunfire than me, and that Lindsey there is freaking internally, and I'm no rocket scientist, but is this your first mission together?” 

“No. Of course not. It's our second,” Phil replied. 

Skye smiled, “I was your first? That's sweet.” 

Ward raised an eyebrow questioningly, “You're amused?”

Skye shook his head, “I'm terrified. I am in way over my head, but I have been on this team just as long as any of you. I might as well be team captain.”

Everyone looked at Skye like she was crazy, and maybe she was, just a little bit.

Skye scoffed, “I was joking, but maybe that's not a bad idea, because these guys do not like each other much.”

“This isn't about that. I'm a specialist. Today, I could have eliminated the enemy threat myself if I was working alone, but I had non-combat-ready agents -- “ Ward started.

Fitz interrupted him, upset, “Whoa, whoa. Wait. You work alone? So typical. Who do you think designs your equipment? Or the polymers for your weaponry. Yeah. People like us do it. - Try going into the field with just your bare bum.”

Lindsey held back a laugh, Fitz’s accent and his quiet yelling made the situation a lot more amusing.

Ward sighed, “See them proving the point I just made?”

Phil sighed, “You're not wrong. We still need to iron out the kinks. But, Ward, you can speak six languages. Simmons, you have two PhDs in fields I can't pronounce, and, Fitz, you are a rocket scientist. So work it out.”

“I-I'm -- I'm good at stuff, too,” Skye said as Phil walked away.

“So, should we work or just continue to --” Simmons started.

Fitz interrupted, “I'm saying I said there would come a moment when we would regret the decision to go in the field. I didn't think that would happen in week one.” 

Simmons, seeing where this was going, changed the subject, “Oh, God. This seam in the sedimentary layers suggests some sort of molten cave-in a few decades back.”

“Yeah, well, this here -- it's optical amplification. Now, I think -- well, I'm most likely dead-on -- that the tesseratic energy excites plasma with an inverse population of energy levels. A laser. A ray of...pure energy -- two terajoules. See the amplifier? We're lucky the drones didn't trigger it while we were taking electromagnetic readings. This is a weapon, powerful enough to --” Fitz said.

Simmons finished his sentence, “Enough to melt through 50 feet of solid rock to bury itself. Imagine what it could do to a person.”

Lindsey sighed, “Yeah, or an airplane. For example.”

~~~

“"Hunger Games"? "Matterhorn."” Skye said as she read off the stack of books Ward kept behind the bar.

“One of a hundred books my S.O. gave me that I'm just getting around to. S.O. -- supervising officer,” Ward explained. 

Skye nodded, “Got it. Hackers have lingo, too, but I'll pick yours up. I feel like you and me -- wrong foot. Can I...buy you a drink? What I said before -- when I said the uprising was -- whatever I said -- a good thing. I don't want you to think I'm oblivious. What I was talking about was the tweets.”

Lindsey raised an eyebrow, “Tweets? Like Twitter?”

“Tweets. You trying to make things better or worse?” Ward asked.

“Peruvians have organized for the first time in decades. Thousands of suffering people who have never met uniting over a common idea? It's mind-blowing. And I don't want to bring it up because I don't want to see your hate face, but...that's what the Rising Tide is all about. Okay. Usually, one person doesn't have the solution. But 100 people with 1% of the solution -- that'll get it done. I think that's beautiful -- pieces solving a puzzle,” Skye said.

“You and I see the world differently. All I need's a gun and Lindsey, and we can solve the problem,” Ward responded.

“So you guys have always been partners then?” skye asked, then noticed Ward’s bleeding shoulder, “Wh-- did you get shot?” 

Ward shrugged “Skin deep. Nothing to worry about. And yes, Lindsey and I have always been partners, ever since she joined the academy during my second year.”

Lindsey nodded.

Skye was still shocked, “You got shot. Did that happen protecting us? Said don't worry about it. Well, no wonder you were so pissed.”

Ward sighed, “I wasn't pissed. I was trained to be the whole solution -- to eliminate variables. And today, they keep adding up.”

There was silence as the plane took a noticeable turn, Lindsey gripped the table, she hated planes.

“We're turning,” Skye noted.

Ward nodded, “We've entered restricted airspace, so we have to follow certain flight paths -- regulation. This plane is capable of fully automated flight, but May has to be on the stick herself tonight. You okay Linds?”

“Peachy,” the agent replied, “Just peachy.”

“You've got an S.O. May's got to be on the stick. Lots of good lingo on this plane,” Skye said.

Ward agreed, “Yeah. We just can't seem to understand each other.” 

Lindsey took a moment to observe the soldiers Camila had brought with her, and noted that the game they were playing with cards wasn't a real one, unless Peruvians played a game where you put random cards down. They had also not even touched their drinks, the ice had already melted into them, watering them down significantly.

The agent turned her head back to the conversation and casually set her elbow on her knee to have her hand block the soldier's line of sight when she spoke.

“Grant, examine the soldiers over there for me. Tell me if you see what I see,” Lindsey said, voice barely above a whisper.

Grant glanced up and sighed.

“Skye, would you be a dear and hand me that beer bottle?” Lindsey asked quietly.

Skye handed her the bottle hesitantly, “Okay, Turbo, but you're still nursing the one you got.”

Ward lifted the half full wine bottle, “We’re not the only ones.”

“Get down,” Lindsey whispered to Skye and paused. “Now!”

And the room exploded into chaos, agent against soldier. Them fighting with guns and the agents fighting with bottled beverages.

~~~

“We're stuck above the clouds for the next few hours. We might as well enjoy ourselves. We could make a few more memories to add to your collection. What do you think?” Camila asked Phil.

They were up in his office, talking about the good old days.

Phil responded after a moment of thought, “I think... Ward already knows you'll have to eliminate May from the equation to have a chance... which gives him about 20 seconds to get to her first. Ahh!” Phil hissed as Camila shot him once in the shoulder. “We were allies. We had history. When did you decide to throw that away?” 

“As soon as I saw your team,” Camila replied.

Phil thought over the situation, “The reason I'm still alive is because you need me to verify the change of routes for your pilot when H.Q. calls in any minute now.”

Camila nodded, “I'd appreciate that.”

“But if I don't, S.H.I.E.L.D. will shoot this aircraft out of the sky. That'll take the 0-8-4 out of your hands. Maybe I should let them,” Phil said.

“Oh, no, I think you'll make the calls. You already handed me your plane for the life of one of your little lab rats. If I open the cargo hold, you'll lose them all. And you are such a sentimentalist,” Camila said with a false smile.

~~~  
Fitz leaned back against the hangar door, “This is my fault. Should have learned kung fu.”

Simmons shook her head, “Oh, yeah, but I shouldn't have pushed you into the field in the first place. You weren't ready.”

Ward blamed himself, “It was my job to make a proper threat assessment-”

“It wasn't just you, Grant, I'm here for the same reasons and as extra muscle, I should've done more,” Lindsey interrupted.

“Uh, we -- We weren't ready,” Ward amended.

Lindsey looked down and sighed, “No, we weren't.”

She looked at May worriedly, never had she once seen her taken out by an opponent. Lindsey leaned on Ward’s shoulder, she'd taken a beating herself and would lean on Ward's strength as well.

Skye sighed, “This wouldn't have happened if Agent May wasn't on the stick. She would have busted out some of her ninja know-how.”

Simmons shook her head, “Agent May? No. No, no. She transferred from administration.”

“Well, I've seen her destroy a guy, so…” Skye stated matter-of-factly.

Ward looked over at the scientists, “You've heard of the cavalry?”

Fitz nodded, “Yeah. Yeah. Wh-- everyone at the academy talks about st--”

Both of the scientists got the meaning behind the question, “She's the cavalry?”

May stirred, “I told you never to call me that.”

Lindsey smiled slightly, “Morning, Agent May.”

The Cavalry grumbled and sat up against the wall.

Simmons was in shock, “I can't believe it. Oh, we're sure to get out of here now. Um, how do we get out of here?”

“Can't go through the doors. They're bolted, tied to the pressurization lines,” Fitz noted.

Lindsey sighed, “You two geniuses have nothing?”

“Yeah, well, it's hard to concentrate in these intense situations,” Fitz snapped in return.

Ward tried to comfort him, “Hey. Don't freeze up. Take a breath. You don't need to come up with the whole solution. Just part of it. Right?” 

Skye smiled, “Yeah. Pieces solving a puzzle.”

~~~

Coulson shook his head, “You knew this was a weapon all along.”

Camila nodded, “But you got to it first. I had to play nice. Yes, Coulson. For once, I'm actually ahead of you. My country commissioned that weapon decades ago. After the fall of Hydra, many scientists followed their Nazi friends to hide on this side of the world. German engineering. The weapon was lost during a clash in the jungle until today. With it, we'll end the rebel uprising and finally stabilize my country.”

“You mean rule your country?” Phil snapped.

Camila shrugged, “You stay in your borders. I'll stay in mine.”

“Those borders are disappearing. Aliens descended on New York, remember? They don't care whose colors you wear. They just care who's in the way. We should be working together, not fighting,” Coulson argued.

~~~

“Well, that's clearly the worst idea we've heard yet,” Fitz said.

“But it could work. Reyes is gonna kill us the minute we land, regardless, and blame it on rebels,” Lindsey countered. “This way, we have a fighting chance. I'll take it.”

Fitz sighed, “What's first? We can't get upstairs without going in the lab. And the only way to release the lab doors is from upstairs. The first thing is, we're tied to the cargo door, so unless you can --”

A loud snapping made him pause.

“What the hell was that?” Fitz asked, looking in the direction the sound came from. 

May.

Ward glanced at May, “Her wrist.”

Simmons yelped as May dislocated her other wrist and slid from the handcuffs, “What's next?”

~~~

Camila looked at Phil's trinkets, “Was it 11 years ago, now? You swooped in with S.H.I.E.L.D. with so much confidence, so much mystery. You had 100 men at your disposal. And now -- A hand-picked team. And, yes, they're that good. Oh, Phil. You're not even aware. Your renewed idealism, your collectibles, your airborne man cave, surrounding yourself with young, attractive agents -- you're having a midlife crisis.”

Phil shrugged, “More an afterlife thing, really.”

Camila smiled, “And I'm not going to even mention the red Corvette.”

“Her name's Lola,” Coulson stated.

Camila laughed,  “Of course it is. It's textbook. You built this team so you could feel relevant, to feel needed.”

Phil shook his head, “They don't need me. They need time.”

“Well, time is not on their side,” Camila responded.

“No, but you gave them something better -- a common enemy,” Coulson said.

~~~

Fitz was freaking out, “Okay, we're sure, right? Everyone's sure? We're all on board. Yeah, let's do this fast. No turning back. No freezing up. Because if we do, then…”

Ward sighed, “All of us die. We know. All right?”

May looked at them, “You guys talk a lot.”

~~~

“S.H.I.E.L.D. 6-1-6, we have radar contact. Requesting confirmation on a change in course. Over,” Maria spoke through the communications in Phil’s office.

Camila cocked her gun, “ Answer it, or they all learn what a 30,000-foot drop feels like.” 

“Agent Coulson, are you there? You have course confirmation. You are cleared direct to the Slingshot.” There was a pause from Maria, “ Agent Coulson? Everything all right up there? We heard you had a little dustup on the ground.”

“Yeah, we're all good. It's gonna be blue skies from here on out,” Phil finally replied.

~~~ 

“Simmons, forget what I said before. This is the moment that we'll regret,” Fitz says before the device beeps and goes off, opening the cabin doors.

“It worked. The drop in cabin pressure released the doors,” Skye said. 

Ward stood and rubbed his recently released hands, “Maddox and I will take care of the soldiers. You guys get to the 0-8-4.” 

Fitz looked concerned, “And Coulson?”

“Let's hope he can handle himself,” Ward barely had time to get upstairs before the 0-8-4 blew a hole in the side of the plane.

Coulson grabbed onto the pole he was tied to tightly, slipping with every passing moment.

Simmons yelled, “Help! Coulson! Got you!”

Lindsey joined her, grabbing onto Coulson's arm.

Phil held onto Camila, “Camilla! Hold on! It's okay. I've got it! Fitz! Reel us back in!” 

Fitz, who was holding on the rope connected to Simmons and Lindsey responded quickly, “I've got you!”

Ward was quick to help the Scott, reeling in the team.

“Cut them loose!” Ward ordered. 

“Sorry, sorry,” Fitz replied, cutting the rope from Simmons and Lindsey’s waist, then Coulson’s wrists.

A huge yellow raft flew past all of them, covering the hole in the Bus.

Skye smiled triumphantly, “Aah! I read the safety pamphlet.”

“Think you and Linds are the only ones,” Ward commented.

Fitz studied the 0-8-4, “The 0-8-4 is cooling and stable. But we should call H.Q. and get it to the Slingshot as soon as possible.” 

Phil turned to Camila, who was lying on the floor, “Told you they were good.”

~~~

“Looks like Skye might end up as more than just a consultant, despite our reservations. She could turn into a solid asset... with some serious work,” Ward said as he watched Phil and Skye interact.

May nodded, “Well, if she wants to be a field agent, she'll need a supervising officer -- someone disciplined, someone good.”

Ward put his hands up in surrender, “ Alright. I'll do it. Just to clarify, you were, uh, talking about me, right?”

May smiled slightly.

Fitz walked past them, a bit tipsy, “We blew up a plane. I had a new experience. Eat that, Professor Vaughn.”

“You had a new experience. But it was new for all of us,” Lindsey said, sitting in Lola’s backseat.

Phil shook his head and motioned for her to get out, Lindsey didn’t budge. 

May nodded towards the two scientists, “They're happy.”

Simmons gestured for the team to join them, setting down the cooler, “Hey, come on. You guys don't want to miss this.”

“So, it'll take about 180 days to reach the sun,” Fitz started. 

Simmons nodded, “Now, yes, of course, it would have been faster if they'd used hydrogen-fueled APUs, but they're having fun.”

Skye raised an eyebrow, nodding towards the cooler of beers, “How many of those have you guys had?”

Simmons laughed, “Sk-- Skye. It's important when in the field to unwind from time to time.” 

Fitz nodded, “Yeah, yeah, especially after a hard day of everyone almost dying. Which doesn't happen every day, right? It's an anomaly -- an irregularity. Not...the norm.”

“Speaking of "not the norm," whose idea was it to blow a hole in the plane?” Phil asked. 

“May said that the doors were tied to the pressurization, so I thought --” Simmons started, then hiccuped. 

Fitz finished for her, “So we thought it was the only way to release them.”

“It was everyone's idea, sir,” Ward put in.

Lindsey leaped out Lola to join them, standing close to Ward, “We solved that problem together, all of us.” 

Simmons nodded, “Yes, quite genius, really.” 

“Nice work,” Phil congratulated. 

“All clear for liftoff,” an Agent said over the loudspeakers. 

“Oh, time for blastoff,” Fitz commented excitedly.

“Launching... In three… two…”

The rocket lifted off, fire burning from below it.

“The trajectory will take it beyond the Lagrange point so that it doesn't hit Herschel. And there haven't been any coronal mass ejections, so it shouldn't lose telemetry,” Simmons said. 

“Whatever that means,” Lindsey laughed.

~~~

Ward knocked before entering Lindsey’s cabin, “You doing okay?”

Lindsey looked up from her SHIELD badge, “No, but I will be, eventually. You know,” she stood and walked closer to Grant, pushing the door closed, “when we can stop lying to the entire team.”

Ward looked down at his partner, who was about four inches shorter than him, “You know why we have to.”

“Yes, yes, because inter team relationships always skew priorities, but I’m not talking about that, and you know it,” Lindsey replied.

Grant cupped her face gently, pecking her lips, “It’ll be over soon.”

~~~

“Really? Really, Coulson? Six days? It only took you six days to take a completely renovated piece of state-of-the-art machinery and turn it into scrap?!” Fury said angrily.

Phil stood and took it, “My team acted with my authority.” 

Fury looked at the Agent, “Don't talk to me about authority. Do you know how much this plane cost? It's got a bar. A really nice one. Talking to me about authority. You know, I have the authority to downgrade your ass to a Winnebago.” 

Phil nodded, “I'm aware of that, sir.” 

‘Well, I want it fixed just like you found it. So don't have Fitzsimmons going making modifications, like a-a-a-a... damn fish tank,” Fury said, exasperated. 

“Yes, sir,” Phil replied.

“And the new girl -- she's a risk,” Fury commented. 

Phil noded, “I know, sir.”

“You know, sir?” Fury asked. “How's Lola?” he sighed. 

“She's fine, sir. Thanks for asking,” Phil smiled.

Fury shook his head, walking away, “Talking to me about authority.” 

Phil put a hand to his ear, triggering his comm link, “Yeah, we're gonna have to kill the fish tank.”


	3. ((Not a Chapter, Just a Short Fic))

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ((the third chapter is taking way too long so, have this thing that I wrote))

“You should go over there and dance with her,” Piper said before sipping at her beer bottle.

Ward turned his head to look at his fellow graduate, “What?”

Piper nodded towards the makeshift dance floor of the gym, “You've been watching Lindsey dance by herself for ten minutes, don't try to deny it. You may have top marks in everything, but you're a bit obvious.”

Grant looked to where Lindsey Maddox danced without a care in the world, hips swaying to the beat. Again, he glanced at Piper before setting his shot glass down on the counter making his way towards Lindsey.

Lindsey saw him coming from across the room and met him halfway, grasping his hand and dragging him towards the dancefloor. She swayed to the beat, laughing as Ward just stood there.

“Come on, Robot, loosen up. We graduated!” Lindsey smiled.

Ward paused for a moment before spinning her around, pressing his chest against her back and wrapping his arms around her waist, swaying with her.

Lindsey giggled in delight and reached up behind her to cup his cheek in her hand, softly singing the lyrics of the song.

“Ain't nobody love like you do…”


End file.
